The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has widened its dragnet to every department in the nation’s international airports to forestall further smuggling of hard drugs.

This is in continuation of the post-strategy occasioned by the arrest of an Arik Air staff in Heathrow, London over trafficking of cocaine into the country.

Chika Egwu Udensi, a flight attendant, was apprehended in August by officials of the United Kingdom Border Force shortly after an Arik Air flight W3101, which departed from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, landed.

The NDLEA put the street value of the 20kg drug found with the suspect at £350,000 (N105m).

The agency also said it had obtained closed-circuit television footage of how another Arik Air worker, Ikechukwu Chibuzor Oliver, who works as a catering loader, smuggled three bags of cocaine among food supplies for flight W3101.

Speaking at the weekend, Head, Public Affairs, NDLEA, Mitchell Ofoyeju, told The Punch that airport workers including cleaners, air traffic controllers and other workers who had enjoyed special treatment were no longer entitled to such.

To avoid a repeat of the incident, Ofoyeju said “We have extended our focus to more areas: The catering department, which we have just uncovered now; the maintenance department – those that are in charge of maintenance; the cleaners – there are cleaners that clean sensitive areas of the airport like the tarmac and the ramps.

“Another area we are looking at is those that are in charge of ticketing; they are also part of the airport community.

“Also, those that handle the luggage; once the luggage is checked in, they go through the conveyor belt to the basement, where the loaders will transport them to the aircraft. All these areas will be given 100 per cent attention. Even the air traffic control personnel will be on our list.

“We are also looking at increasing our surveillance of those that own restaurants within the premises. It will also include the car park and the drivers. All these make the big picture for the airport community.”